Showcase



June 15, 1937. L M, SAWN 2,084,006

SHOWCASE Filed Jan. 6, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June | M. SAWlN 2,084,006

SHOWCASE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 6, 1954 El 12 & 1301767115 Lesfir JW. ficwrm Patented June 15 1937 UNI-TED STATES PATENT OFFICE SHOWCASE Application January 6, 1934, Serial No. 705,520

1 Claim.

The invention relates generally to show cases and more particularly to a show case in which articles displayed therein are subjected to heat.

The general object of the invention is to provide a glass-walled show case of the knock-down type, in which the parts are so interrelated as to be capable of being easily assembled, and when assembled provide a structure possessing a high degree of rigidity and stability.

Another object is to provide a case of the abovementioned character in which heat is employed for treating articles within the case, and which is constructed to allow for expansion of the parts of the case due to such heat, so that breakage of the 1.3 glass is prevented.

A further object is to provide a case of the above-mentioned character, in which the rigidity is attained partially by means for tying the top edges of the glass walls together, said means being in the form of a tray for articles such as packaged goods. 7

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in

25 which:

Figure l is a perspective view of a show case embodying the features of the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical section of the show case.

39 Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the case.

Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 1-7 of Fig. 2.

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 88 of Fig. 2.

Figure 9 is an enlarged fragmentary section showing a modified construction.

In its preferred form, my improved display case includes means by which heat may be applied to products such as nuts or the like on display within the case. Accordingly, it is constructed to allow for expansion of the parts of the case due to such heat, so that breakage of the glass walls will be prevented. Contributing to the rigidity of the case is a tray at the top of the case which serves,

in addition to its function as a means for supporting packaged nuts or the like, to tie the glass walls together.

The exemplary embodiment of the invention comprises a fiat base II], preferably made of wood. The glass walls rest on edge on the base and are anchored thereto to prevent any substantial relative movement. At the top, the walls are tied together to prevent separation thereof, so that a structure of great rigidity is obtained. The glass walls, in the present instance, comprise two end plates I I standing vertically, and a front plate l2 extending upwardly and rearwardly from the front edge of the base. The front edges of the 10 end walls i i are correspondingly shaped so as to lie under and closely adjacent to the front wall I2. The case is thus rectangular in shape and has a slanting front Wall.

The walls are preferably anchored to the base y at the four corners in order to prevent lateral, as well as longitudinal, shifting of the walls relative to the base. To this end, four anchor members are provided in the present instance, two at the rear corners of the case being indicated at I3, and two at the front corners being indicated at 20. The anchor members are preferably in the form of channels rigidly secured at their lower ends to the base and fitting over the upright edges of the glass. Thus, each rear anchor member i3 comprises a channel I4 fitting over the rear edge of the end wall II and an angle cleat I5 secured to the channel I4 as by riveting and rigidly attached to the base I!) as by screws I6 (see Fig. '7). Each of the anchor members 20 at the front corners comprises a pair of channels 2| (see Fig. 8) rigidly secured together as by welding at a right angle to each other. The channels 2| respectively fit over the front edge of the end wall 5 I and the end edge of the front wall I2. To secure the channels 2i to the base, an angle cleat 22 is riveted thereto and is attached to the base as by screws 23.

It will be noted that the anchor members I3 and 28 prevent the longitudinal movement of 40 the walls relative to the base since they are positioned at the end edges of the walls. They also prevent lateral movement since the channels fit over the edges of the walls. Thus, the walls are anchored at their lower edges to the base. 45

At the top, the walls are tied together to prevent separation thereof. The means for so doing, in the present instance, comprises a member in the form of a tray 4!! adapted to support articles on topof the case and forming'a portion 50 of the top wall of the case. As illustrated herein, the tray is made of sheet metal bent to form a rim around the four edges. To tie the end walls together, the portions of the rim at the ends of the tray are reversely bent to form channels 42 55 (see Fig. 4). The channels 42 fit over the top edges of the end walls thereby supporting the tray and tying the end. walls together. To reduce waste of metal in manufacturing the tray, the portions of the rim at the ends of the tray and the channels 52 may be made of pieces of metal separate from the tray proper and secured thereto as by clips 43.

At the front of the tray, the rim is also reversely bent as at 4!, and is positioned inside and adjacent the top edge of the front wall. If it is desired to tie in the front wall by means of the tray, the reversely bent portion 4i may be placed over the outer face of the front wall, as shown in Fig. 9. The front and end walls may also be secured together at the corners by upper members 30, each comprising a pair of channels fitting over the edges of the side and front walls adjacent the top edge.

The rear portion of the rim of the tray is preferably extended upwardly above the other portions and is provided with clips i l for supporting advertising placards or the like.

As mentioned above, the case includes means by which heat may be applied to products, such as nuts or the like, on display within the case. Preferably, the heating means is an electrical heater adapted to radiate heat onto nuts contained in pans resting on the base It. Such a heater is shown at 24, and is mounted in the upper part of the case to radiate heat down wardly. Support for the heater is provided by the tray 45, the heater being attached thereto as by bolts 45.

On account of the heat within the case, which at times goes as high as 500 F., the glass walls will expand to a substantial extent and, unless allowance be made for such expansion, breakage of the glass will occur. Allowance is, therefore, made for such expansion but in such a manner that the rigidity and stability of the case are not adversely affected. To this end, the anchor members 13 and 28 are so spaced that, while the channels fit over the end edges of the glass, the web portions of the channels do not abut against the edges of glass at least at one end of the glass, to provide space for longitudinal expansion of the glass. Thus, as shown in Fig. 7, a space is provided between the rear edge of the end wall Ii and the web of channel [4. At the front edge of the .end wall, no such space is provided, so that the end and front walls may lie closely adjacent each other. To allow for expansion of the front wall, space may be provided at both ends, as shown in Fig. 8.

The rear of the case is preferably closed by a screen 31 which is movable so that access to the interior of the case may be had. To this end, the screen 3! is provided with a frame 32. The end edges of the screen are slidably supported by vertically standing channels 33. Preferably the channels 33 are rigidly attached to the rear anchoring members i3 as by welding. The screen may thus be raised and lowered.

The tray 46 is relatively narrow and preferably constitutes the front portion of the top wall of the case. To complete the top wall, a plate of glass 50 may be employed to extend from the rear of the tray to the rear of the case. Preferably the plate is supported on the top edges of the end walls II. To hold the plate 50 in place, retaining members 5| are positioned at the ends thereof as shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5. Each retaining member comprises a pair of channels at a right angle to each other with one channel fitting over the end edge of the plate 50 and the other channel fitting over the top edge of the end wall ll.

Since the tray 40 is positioned at the front of the case, means is also provided at the rear of the case for preventing the end walls from spreading. As shown in Figs. 3 and 5, this means comprises a strap 52 fitting in clips 54 formed on the front faces of the screen supporting channels 33. The ends of the strap 52 are bent to fit around the channels 33. Thus, the strap 52 ties the channels 33 together and prevents the end walls from spreading.

In use, nut products or the like are placed in pans resting on the base Ill. The heater 24, being suspended over the base, radiates heat downwardly onto the nuts. This heat causes the case to reach such a degree of temperature that a substantial amount of expansion of the glass walls takes place. This amount of expansion would cause the glass to break if allowance were not made therefor. As the case is constructed, the glass may expand into the spaces provided between the webs of the channels and the edge of the glass. Thus, there is no danger of the glass breaking because of such expansion.

The case may be readily assembled and disassembled, since the glass walls may be slid into the channel-shaped portions of the anchor members. The tray may he slipped down over the top edges of the end walls I I to rest thereon. It thus serves to tie the end walls together and prevent them from spreading. Similarly, the strap 52 at the rear prevents the end walls from spreading. The screen 3| may be placed in position by sliding its frame 32 downwardly into the guide channels 33. The channels 33 thus permit the screen to be raised to permit access to the interior of the case.

From the above description, it will be apparent that I have provided a glass-walled show case of the knock-down type which may be readily assembled. It is also apparent that when the case is assembled, it possesses a high degree of rigidity. The case is also constructed to allow for expansion of the glass walls due to heat within the case, so that breakage of the glass is prevented.

I claim as my invention:

A display case for retail sale of nuts comprising, in combination, a rectangular base, front and end walls made of glass, the front wall being upwardly and rearwardly inclined, a top wall comprising in part a metal tray to support packages of nuts and constituting the front part of the top wall, said base being of substantially greater width in a front to rear direction than the top wall, a heater including a downwardly facing reflector suspended from the tray, said heater extending lengthwise of the case and being disposed in a. vertical plane located substantially centrally of the base from front to rear, the rear side providing an opening for access to the interior of the case, the rear part of the top wall being made of glass to permit the contents of the case to be viewed readily.

LESTER M. SAWIN. 

